Judges, Lawyers Hinder Corruption Cases, Says Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday said there was an urgent need for reform in the judiciary which allowed delay tactics by lawyers, aided by some judges, to stall corruption trials and hinder recovery of proceeds of crime in high profile corruption cases. Buhari, who was represented by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo during the opening session of this year’s All Nigeria Judges’ Conference in Abuja, regretted that Nigeria was fast losing trust and esteem of Nigerians.

The conference which is to end on Friday was organized by the National Judicial Institute.

The President noted that the current challenges of corruption and delay tactics employed by lawyers with the collusion of some judges ended up preventing a verdict to be reached on the guilt or innocence of the accused person.

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He said, “Government’s attempts to recover such assets in accordance with the law are often faced with dilatory tactics by lawyers, sometimes with the apparent collusion of judges.

“These tactics are often not directed at reaching any conclusion or affirming innocence or guilt, but at stalling trials indefinitely, thus denying the state and the accused person the opportunity of a judicial verdict.

“I wish to echo the sentiments of the vast majority of Nigerians in saying that we cannot afford to continue like this.”

The President, who called for the eradication of the practice of appealing interlocutory decisions, also suggested a reduction in the workload of the Supreme Court as a way of curbing delay.

He said the reform needed by the Judiciary must extend to the reviews of laws, institutions, processes and procedures that inhibit speedy justice delivery.

“We must also re-orientate and improve the attitude of legal practitioners and the legal profession in general. Judges must not be weak or appear to be weak in sanctioning lawyers and litigants who deliberately stall and frustrate the judicial process,” the President said.

Calling for urgent reform, President Buhari said it would be difficult for the government to effectively tackle corruption and encourage investments unless the judiciary addressed its identified challenges and shortcomings.

He said, “It is abundantly clear that democracy and the democratic tradition cannot thrive, and indeed will not, if the judiciary fails to perform its roles with truth, justice and courage.

“While it is undeniable that the judiciary continues to make incremental progress in playing its constitutional role, it is still the consensus of observers that the overall level of judicial service delivery still leaves much to be desired. Urgent reforms, therefore, remain imperative in several areas.

“Unfortunately, in recent years, perhaps more than ever before, allegations of judicial corruption have become more strident and frequent. Some of the available surveys on public perception of the judiciary clearly show that the judiciary is losing the trust and esteem of the Nigerian population.

“This is dangerous indeed for our fledgling democracy. Democracy and the fundamental freedoms and rights and assurances for the protection of private and public rights rely entirely on a judiciary, whose integrity is unimpeachable.

“There is both local and international dissatisfaction with long delays in the trial process. In the past few years, this has become especially so for high-profile cases of corruption, especially where they involve serving or former political office holders. Corruption transfers from public coffers to private pockets resources required to deliver social and economic justice.”

The Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mahmud Mohammed, cautioned judges against abusing their discretionary powers.

He warned that cases of abuse of such powers, especially as it related to indiscriminate granting of perpetual injunction, would be closely monitored by the National Judicial Council and penalized.

He said, “Therefore, the way and manner in which you exercise your discretion goes a long way in affirming the independence or otherwise of our courts and noble profession.

“We must all remember that in the quest for justice, no stakeholder should suffer injustice. Therefore, it is of great concern when we read about judges who have granted perpetual injunctions that act as a fetter on the mandate of a prosecutorial agency to perform its statutory functions.

“Subsequently, the indiscriminate granting of these perpetual injunctions has proven more injurious to the judiciary itself than to those for whose benefit they were granted. They have created a negative impression of the judiciary and the integrity of Your Lordships and must be reconsidered.

“Given the current trend and the potential for abuse, I wish to state that the National Judicial Council will, henceforth, pay closer attention to orders and rulings that will frustrate the ends of justice.

“As such, you must remember that unless the proprietary or personal rights of an applicant are in great peril, then Your Lordships should err on the side of caution in granting ex-parte interim orders.”

He urged the executive to respect the independence of the judiciary, particularly in the area of finance, by releasing as and when due their budgetary allocations.

The Administrator of the NJI, Justice Rosaline Bozimo, said the conference was intended for the judges to review their performances in the past year and strategize for better performance in the new legal year.